Baby Steps
by MsWikit
Summary: Team Year Eight. Tye and Asami have been dating and living together for three years. But things take a turn for the unexpected when Asami discovers she's pregnant.


_[10:32 AM] Morning hermano._

_[10:33 AM] I knocked up Sam_

_[10:34 AM] Ok I'm gonna go back to bed and when I come back we're gonna try this again._

_[10:45 AM] Morning hermano._

_[10:46 AM] Morning dude I knocked up Sam_

_[10:46 AM] Damn it Tye._

Jaime frowned and immediately dialed Tye's number. He really hoped that this was some sort of joke. Tye's sense of humor could be twisted like that sometimes. Either way, this wasn't how he wanted to start his Saturday morning. It had been a long, hard week. School had just started, and it seemed as if every criminal in the state of Texas had decided to come out in force. Sure, these days he had Tye and Asami to help him. But even on missions he felt like a third wheel with them (though Bart was never more than a text message away).

Tye picked up on the first ring. "Hey."

"Are you being serious right now?" Jaime demanded.

"Yup," Tye said. His voice sounded so casual, as if Jaime had just asked him if he'd done his homework. (Though Tye's answer to that question was very rarely yes.) "She told me last night that she was like two weeks late. So this morning we went out and got a pregnancy test."

It had to be a joke. It just had to be. Jaime tried to imagine Tye as a father. Did he even know how to change a diaper? Did Asami know? "I...seriously, hermano. Stop shitting me. It's not funny."

"I'm not shitting you," Tye insisted. "The test was positive."

"Maybe...maybe it's a false positive," Jaime suggested. "That happens sometimes."

"She's two weeks late," his friend replied. "According to her, that's never happened before. And I'm pretty sure she would know."

The reality of this was setting in. What he didn't understand was why he felt so shocked and worried, but Tye sounded so...ok with it all. "Is she going to keep it? Like, carry it to full term and everything? Or..."

"I don't know," Tye said. "It's her decision. I mean, I'm not the one who has to be pregnant for nine months."

"You don't care?" Jaime asked, surprised.

"No, I do, but it's her decision," Tye replied. "She's the one that has to deal with everything. Morning sickness and back pain and...whatever else happens during pregnancy. And the whole...giving birth thing. She has to deal go through all of that. So. I can't really tell her what to do with it."

"That makes sense," Jaime said. "Do you think she'll go through with it?"

Tye paused. "I don't know."

"What do you do I if she wants to keep it?" Jaime asked.

"Be a dad. I guess. Though I'm not really sure how to be a dad. Mine died when I was like six. And the guys that came after him weren't exactly top notch role models," Tye said. Slowly his voice became a bit more strained. "And oh my God Jaime I've never even held a baby before _how the hell do I do this_?!"

Jaime frowned. "Hey, hey. Calm down hermano. You may not even be keeping it!"

He heard Tye take a deep breath. After a couple of minutes, he seemed to regain his composure. "You're...you're right. I just wanted to tell someone. Mom's working today. We have to wait till dinner to tell her."

So Jaime knew that Shelly might be a grandmother before she did. He wondered how she would react. She had always been a very lenient parent. (Especially after Tye was abducted by the Reach; he figured that there was some guilt involved in that. She didn't even report him as a runaway, even when no one had seen him for weeks.) Not many mothers would allow their son's girlfriend to live with them. Even fewer would let them sleep in the same room together. But how would she deal with this? Would she be angry?

"I...I'm just still in shock, hermano. How did this happen?" Jaime asked. He always thought that Tye and Asami were at least being safe about things. "Don't you guys use protection and everything?"

"'Course we do. We're not idiots. Sam's on the pill, and we always use a condom. Still happened. Nature finds a way, I guess," Tye said.

"...you did not just quote Jurassic Park."

"So what if I did."

"Dios mio, Tye..."

x

Asami lifted her shirt, staring at her stomach in the mirror. It looked completely normal. Flat, for the most part, with a bruise on her right side from yesterday's sparring session. It was hard to believe there was a baby in there. But, the longer she looked, the more she began to notice a tiny bump. Was she already showing? Or was she just imagining it?

She sighed, pulling her shirt back down. It seemed so unreal; she was only seventeen. How could she be a mother? How could she even be pregnant? They were always so careful...

Tye knocked on the door. "Babe? You ok?"

"Yeah," she answered, coming out of the bathroom. "I ok."

He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead. "You feeling sick again?"

"No. Just afraid," Asami said. She hugged him close and rested her head on his chest. "I don't know what to do."

Tye rested his chin on the top of her head. "About the whole...baby thing?"

"No, Tye, about math homework," Asami replied, rolling her eyes slightly. "Yes, about baby...I don't know what to do. I don't want to get rid of it. But I don't want to give it up."

"If we put it up for adoption," Tye said, "it wouldn't go far. The tribe wouldn't allow them to be sent off to a foster home in Minnesota or something. They'd be raised in the area. We could still see them and everything."

Asami pulled away. "Then why give it up at all? So I can watch couple across street raise it?"

"The couple across the street is from Rhode Island," Tye said, raising an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean," Asami sighed. She crossed her arms over her chest. "I know you said it my choice but...what you think we should do? This baby is half yours, you know."

Her boyfriend frowned slightly and leaned against the wall. "Yeah, yeah, I know...I just...I'm not sure, Sam. At first I just thought it'd be easier on both of us if you just got an abortion. But the more I think about it...the more I want to keep it. I mean. I'm scared shitless by that. I have no idea how to be a dad. You don't know how to be a mom. We're way too young. But...I don't know."

"...maybe we _should_ keep it," Asami said, looking at him. "We done crazier stuff before."

"Got abducted by aliens," Tye agreed.

"Saved world," she added.

"Twice." Tye smiled at her. "You realize we have no idea what the hell we're doing. Like. At all."

"When do we ever know what the hell we doing?" Asami said, shrugging slightly.

He chuckled. "Good point...so...we're going to keep it?"

Asami nodded slowly. "I guess so."

"Great. Now we just have to tell Mom."

"Oh. I forget about that."

x

It became obvious that something was up as soon as Shelly got home. Yet there was nothing out of place, nothing that seemed wrong outright. Tye and Asami were sitting on the couch, as usual. Asami's head was resting in his lap. Tye had one arm propped up on the back of the couch. His eyes were on the TV. It was turned to a football game, which explained why Asami was half-asleep. (She usually preferred baseball or soccer.) There was nothing wrong with this picture. But Shelly knew that something was off.

"Hey Mom," Tye said, barely looking up from the TV. "How was work?"

"It was good," Shelly replied. She set her purse down on the coffee table. "How was your day?"

Tye shrugged. "It was a day."

Shelly smiled slightly. His father used to say that all the time; she wondered if he remembered that, or if it was a habit he'd picked up unconsciously. "Nothing interesting?"

"It interesting," Asami said, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. "We have something to tell you."

That couldn't be good. "What is it?"

"Sit down, Mom," Tye sighed.

Oh, definitely not good.

Shelly sat down slowly, looking at them in confusion. What could be the matter? Did they have a mission that went badly? "What's wrong?"

Tye and Asami glanced at each other. They seemed to be having a conversation without even speaking. They did that sometimes. They were always together, and had learned to communicate with a look or a gesture. After all, their relationship had started when both of them could barely speak the other's language. Finally, Asami spoke. "I pregnant."

At first, Shelly wasn't sure she completely understood. Perhaps she had heard wrong? Sometimes Asami's accent was difficult to understand. Every so often she needed Tye to translate. It didn't seem possible that what she'd heard was actually what Asami said. "I...what? I don't..."

"Sam's pregnant, Mom," Tye said. "She's having a baby."

Shelly froze. "A...a baby?"

They both nodded.

"...how?" Shelly asked. Suddenly she felt nothing but anger. She'd know they were having sex. That much couldn't be avoided. They were dating and living in the same house. It was bound to happen sooner or later. But she had done everything in her power to prevent this from happening. Educated them about sex, gave them easy access to birth control...all of that to prevent this very thing from happening. "I thought you kids were more responsible! Don't you remember what I told you when you first moved in, Asami? I-"

"Mom, we weren't being stupid!" Tye protested. "It still happened. That's just how they worked out."

Shelly crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh really?"

"Yes! We always use a condom and you know Sam is on the pill," Tye said quickly. Talking to his mother about their sex habits was embarrassing, but it had to be done. "Look; we're sorry. It's not like we planned this or anything!"

Well, Tye had a point there. The kids must be twice as scared as she was. Though they were hiding it very well. She knew that they were trying to seem calm about all of this. But inside, they were both probably panicking. Yelling at them would only make things worse. The air seemed to deflate out of Shelly. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. "What are you going to do with it?"

"We're going to keep it." Tye grabbed Asami's hand, squeezing it.

A baby. Tye and Sam were going to have a _baby_...they were just kids. What did they know about taking care of a child? Nothing...nothing at all! But there was nothing to be done about it now. It had happened, and they'd made their decision. "Alright...alright. We'll...we'll deal with this. I'll make a doctor's appointment for you tomorrow, Asami. Ok? We have to make sure."

Asami nodded. She could tell that Shelly was hoping that it might be a false alarm. But, either way, she would need to start making doctor's visits. "Thank you."

"We know this is a shock..." Tye said, looking at his mom.

"A shock doesn't begin to describe it, Tye," Shelly said, setting her hand on her forehead. "Both of you are going to have to step up and take some responsibility. Having a child isn't a walk in the park. It's a lot of work, a lot of time..."

"We know," Tye replied, "we'll make it work."

Shelly sighed again. "Are you going to give up the team?"

"I will. Least till after baby is born," Asami answered, setting her hand on her stomach. She didn't even want to risk using her powers while she was pregnant. Vaulting through the air at seventy miles per hour didn't seem like it would be good for an unborn child.

"I may," Tye said. He hadn't considered that he might have to quit for a while. But if Asami needed him to, so be it. The team could do without for a while.

His mother nodded slowly. "Well...I guess I better go start dinner."

"Want some help?" Tye offered.

"No, I've got it..." Shelly said quietly. She disappeared into the kitchen.

Tye looked at Asami and squeezed her hand again. "She took it better than I thought she would...that's good, I guess."

"I thought there be more yelling," Asami admitted. "Now we only have to tell...everyone else we know."

He kissed her temple, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "We can do that tomorrow. When we know for sure."

"Baby steps," Asami agreed. She leaned into him so that her head rested against his chest.

Her boyfriend nodded once. A moment later, a smirk spread across his face. "Did you just make that joke? _Really_?"

They looked at each other, grinning. Then they collapsed against each other and erupted into laughter.


End file.
